Written Interviews – V.I.S.U.A.L (D.N.A)

V.I.S.U.A.L. aka D.N.A. is originally from New York City and found his love and passion for music early in life which led him to enter onto the music scene in May of 1998 with the stage name V.I.S.U.A.L. aka D.N.A.. He quickly gained an enormous fan base on the East Coast with his old school hip-hop lyrics. V.I.S.U.A.L. complex yet comedic flows grabbed the attention of just about anyone who knows real hip-hop and can relate. His common goals while taking this journey are to share his real life experiences along with his trials and tribulations.

In 2005 V.I.S.U.A.L. aka D.N.A. was involved with the Vans Warped Tour and performed at various venues. V.I.S.U.A.L. aka D.N.A. is looking to restore real hip-hop to what it once was but in a new century. Influences included artist like; Biggie, Nas, The Roots, KRS-One , Jadakiss, Kool G Rap and Big Pun just to name a few.

In 2006 he appeared on Georgia Tech Radio 91.1 Fm and promoted his first album “Da Answers 2 Ya Questions”. After a great response from the first album V.I.S.U.A.L. aka D.N.A then began working on his second album titled “4 Ya Ears Only”. V.I.S.U.A.L. aka D.N.A is constantly looking for ways to perfect great music with his sounds and lyrics in order to put out album after album that his fans love to hear.

In 2010 V.I.S.U.A.L. aka D.N.A released a mixtape titled Executive Decision hosted by DJ Flatline which featured the smash hit All U Gotta Do. It garnered great attention as the fans wanted more music. 2011 V.I.S.U.A.L. aka D.N.A linked back up with DJ Flatline and The Cinematix to bring you the second installment of his mixtape Series Easier Said Than Done.

In 2012 D.N.A. then followed up with the album titled Easier Said Than Done with the help of Dj Flatline again. V.I.S.U.A.L. then came out a few months later with Life As I Sea It which was hosted by Tha Advocate.

After taking time off in 2014, V.I.S.U.A.L. released the double album titled The Rebirth which was released in the fall of the same year and was hosted by Tha Advocate once again. This artist has also been featured on our Mixtapekings.com, Vladtv.com, Hiphoplead.com and Ballerstatus.com just to name a few.

At this current time V.I.S.U.A.L. is putting the finishing touches on his follow up album titled V which will be released in coming months. Please see the web links below for further information. Stay tuned.

1. Whats good Visual??

What’s good Mixtapekings.com? First I want to thank you for the opportunity of providing an avenue for underground artists to be heard. I’ve been a fan of your site for a while and I’m honored to be featured on your site.
2.Thanks bro, same here. It been almost a year since we featured your last album, “The ReBirth”, and we heard you got something new in the works. Can you tell us what’s in store for “V”?

The album V will be a well-rounded album covering topics from the current state of hip-hop all the way to today’s current events. The purpose of this album is to bring you into my state of mind and show you life as I see it. I will have records for the ladies to vibe to and records the fellas can ride to.

Production wise the album will feature beats from Bell Boy Mal, Fly Life Beats and Gramatik

4. What does the V.I.S.U.A.L. D.N.A. stand for?

V.I.S.U.A.L. Verbally Injecting Similies U All Love.

D.N.A. Dismembering Negativity Anonymously

5. You have been vocal in your raps about the state of Hip-Hop and went for some of the new generations heads before on wax. Which artists in particular annoy you the most and why?

The current climate of artists out today isn’t what hip-hop represents in my opinion. Drake bothers me at times because one minute he is an EMO rapper and the next he wants to body someone. Which one is it? I remember when you had to be nice to be behind the M-I-C. When artists would battle for street cred and props. Now you have artists like Migos, Waka Flaka and Gucci who all talk about the same thing. Not everyone can live the life they describe. Yes nice cars, big house and lots of money would be nice. But is it reality? We have a lot of artists who feel they are entitled just because. I’m not a fan of the new artists who are looking for a check. If you are here to preserve the art form then let’s connect and make music.
6. If you could trade any present day rapper for any emcee that is out of the spotlight, who would it be and why?

I would trade Drake for Biggie easily because Biggie represented authenticity, lyricism and was overall ill. Big learned from Pac that radio records were an important aspect to making it in this game. Biggie’s freestyle ability was uncanny and he has the records to prove it. Life After Death is in constant rotation. I would trade Migos for Pac because Pac was the most beloved MC to leave the game. Pac’s catalog is second to none and was one of, if not the best for live stage performance. Pac also brought realism to the game and I think the fans appreciated who he was on and off the mic. He also had great acting skills and I believe he would’ve went further had he still been alive. I would trade Waka for Kool G Rap cause Kool G is the Godfather of Gangster. His delivery and lyrics on 4,5,6 still get bumped in the whip to this day. Kool G Rap brought real NY rap and even assisted others by ghostwriting for them. He birthed a lot of flows that you hear today. I would trade Young Thug for KRS-One swiftly because KRS-One is probably the illest overall MC. KRS-One is one of the nicest in written and freestyle form and is still “The Teacher” of our genre of music. He paved the way for a lot of artists out today commercial and underground. Last but not least I would trade Rick Ross for Big Pun. Big Pun’s delivery and ability to rhyme slow or fast without missing a beat made him stand. Pun’s bars were second to none and is still one of my favorite to listen to. Who doesn’t own Capital Punishment?
7. What is your long term goal in this game? You trying to get signed to a major, indy or just do this for fun?

My overall goal is simply to be heard. In the beginning I was attempting to sign to a major but also recognized how artists were treated on majors. The majors are simply a machine to strip you of all profits made but allowing you to be heard by a wider audience. Indy is the way to go because you control your own path. Indy allows you to be more hands on with your projects and artists. It is a less traveled road due to so many wanting the lifestyle. For me music is a form of expression. It provides you a snapshot into the artist’s life at that moment.

8. We can tell bars mean a lot to you when you craft your lyrics. It must drive you up a wall hearing what they call Hip-hop nowadays?

(laughs) You have no idea. Nothing brings me more pain then hearing these so called lyrics from these wannabe artists that have never experienced a battle or a cypher. Bars means everything to me because without those you just talking on the mic. An artist’s job is to entertain and excite the listener’s ear. If your bars ain’t tight no one presses rewind. Once that happens you have failed as an artist. (laughs) True story.

9. We saw you go in about the Meek and Drake “battle”. Tell me .. did anyone win that and where would you put that battle a long the lines of all the great battles in Hiphop history?

I feel bad for this generation’s views on what a battle is. Drake and Meek’s tussle was merely a spat. Drake won the spat because Meek’s response was weak and delayed. I was in Meek’s corner due to him coming from the battle circuit and was sure this was going to be an easy win. Drake is overly popular at this time and was the reasoning for him winning. I don’t think his content was on point besides a few lines here and there but nothing that stood out. If you want to see a real battle I would recommend Cube vs. Common, LL Cool J vs. Canibus, or Jay-Z vs. Nas to name a few. Those were real battles. Real Mc’s reality rap at it’s finest.

10. About a decade ago you performed all over on the Vans Warped Tour. What was that experience like? Any special memories about it?

Vans Warp Tour was an incredible experience. Vans allows for all artists to perform and get their shine on regardless of genre. I had the opportunity of showcasing my talents to the masses and enjoyed myself. It allowed you to engage with fans directly and also interact with them. My special memory from the tour: being able to travel and perform what you love to do.

11. You have any music videos in the works? If so, can you shed some light on which project they are from, etc?

I have a video that is being edited currently that we shot out in D.R. and I’m excited to see the finish product of that project. The song that was shot out in Dominican Republic is titled “Don’t Stop” and is a remix to Pharcyde’s “Passing Me By.” Definitely stay tuned for that one. We have a lot of videos coming your way. The goal is to shoot a video for each song off of the album.

12. Out of all the songs you ever did which would have the MTK viewers hooked?

Man that’s a tough one. I treat each song like a new born child so I love them all. Probably the one I get the most feed on is a song called All U Gotta Do that I recorded a few years ago. People enjoy the production and wordplay on this track from what I’m told. Tell me what you think.

13. Whats on the agenda for Visual for the rest of 2015?

The agenda for the remainder of the year is to continue finishing up V. I hope to have the project finished by 4th quarter of this year or the top of 2016. Once the project is finished then we can start promoting the project more and drop more videos to accompany the songs.

14. It was good chopping it up with you homie. We look forward to hearing more from you. With that said the floor is yours ..

It has been a pleasure fam connecting with you and your team. Shout outs: My family first and foremost as they have been instrumental in my love for music and the art form. I gotta thank the fans because they are the reason I do what I do. Shouts out to my team When World’s Collide which consists of Bell Boy Mal, Doomzday Jay and myself. We have a lot of material coming so definitely keep a look out for new songs. Shouts out to Tha Advocate for assisting underground artists and Mixtapekings.com for allowing us to be heard on their platform. I look forward to working with your team again in the near future and would like to do a follow up interview when the album is finished. Thanks for your time.